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Thanks!

12-19-2009, 11:47 AM

I chose to build a pompeii oven largely because of this great forum. As I was reading posts today about how to cover the insulation with stucco, I realized I wanted to say thanks to all of the people who posted questions & all the experienced builders who took the time to provide detailed answers.

I consulted so many posts as I moved through the process of building my oven and now that it's (mostly) done, I realized how many small construction glitches I overcame with your help. My friends and I have baked (and eaten) over 60 pizzas since completing the dome back in October.

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echopark
now don't be selfish nor withstrained, since you are happy with the forum, it would be nice to see some pics of your build.
Now you will be looking for hints on cooking/baking and then the outdoor entertainment/kitchen area.
Once your oven is complete, the exercise doesn't stop there, the saga continues as you use it more and more.

I don't know what Forno Bravo charges to ship their "Pompeii 36 Kit" to LA, but I spent only about $50 less on oven materials then it would have cost to just buy everything from them. I figure that shipping costs were my only real savings.

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Thanks EP!
I'll check with West LA when I'm ready to build. I was mainly interested in bricks only. I can pretty much pick everything else up nearby. But $90 delivery charge is very reasonable, considering the very narrow, hilly streets of our barrio. Most trucks hate coming up my street, especially with a forklift in tow.

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The oven floor is about 35.8" in diameter (a 45-brick circle). There is a 6" cantilevered overhang in the front. The finished oven is about 53" wide, and the oven landing is 7" from the front edge. The math goes something like this: (floor diameter)+(2x brick depth)+(2x insulation)+(2x stucco) =~ 36+9+6+2 = 53"

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Amazing!! I've been spending hours trying to find a small footprint stand that'll work with a 36" Pompeii with no luck until now.

I have a patio post that's 79" from the fence (it's in my way, but I can't move it and need to adjust my plans accordingly). 23" in walking room/clearance is still pretty tight, but I'll see what I can do.

I considered doing a corner build, but then I'd have to make it separate from my outside kitchen island. Do you think it's possible to rotate the oven 45 degrees (using a corner design) and still have a 56" X 56" design on the long sides? This might allow me to access the oven face without having to worry about the patio post.

According to FB, length for a 36" oven is 70". You obviously cut out the 12" landing and part of the wall. This arrangement looks like there isn't much rrom for a wall if I want to enclose it, right? What's your math on the depth?

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I also considered a corner oven. It just makes sense to make the oven a centerpiece, rather than stick it off to the side.

The depth from the oven opening to the edge of the landing (hearth) is 12." The cantilever adds 6" of concrete, I plan to put flagstone on that to make at least 8" up-front. I've used the oven 10 times or more since finishing it -- the landing has been fine. I've used two pizza ovens with no landing with no worries. The landing matters a bit more if you are planning to bake bread -- then you need to incorporate something to remove hot coals and ashes.

The back wall is about 12" away from my fence (maybe a bit more, I can stand back there)

My recommendation is to draw the oven out full-scale using chalk and a couple of fire bricks as guides.

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I missed your corner question --- yes, is my answer. The dimension from the back of my oven to the front of the hearth at the landing is around 55" the diagonal of 56 is 79"

However, if you rotate the oven 45į to fit in a corner, you may find that you need to shorten the wing-walls that surround the landing.

The "hood" of the vent/flue needs to be at least 9.5" to support a metal flue base plate and needs to be at least as wide as the oven door +2" (21" inside, 30" outside). That said, there is no reason why the base of the oven landing cannot be shorter than the depth of the vent/flue opening. You might need to corbel or cantilever the vent "hood" a bit -- could be a very cool visual feature. Indoor ovens are often built this way.

BTW: Positioning the oven opening INTO the prevailing wind directions is key. It seems to me that on days when the wind is blowing from the back of my oven, it's very hard to get the fire started, and it smokes out the door a lot more than usual.